A New Kind of Narcissism
by TheAlchemist'sDaughter
Summary: Warp's latest invention accidently brings the Titans from another dimension into our Titan's dimension. These new Titans are charismatic, seductive, mischievous, everything our Titans want to be...RobStar, BBRae chp 2 rewrite!
1. Chapter 1

Unwelcome Counterparts

Chapter 1

Cyborg clenched his teeth as he tried desperately not to laugh. Across the room, Robin and Starfire were doing their "thing". Recently, watching their fearless leader avoid and hide from their alien comrade had become one of Cyborg's favourite past-times. Robin denied it of course, but you'd have to be blind to miss it.

Beastboy wandered in and moved to sit next to Raven, who was reading on the couch. He put his arm around her and said

"Hi Raven" in a gentle voice, while leaning in to kiss her cheek. But she shrugged him off and stood up, sitting back down in one of the single chairs without even looking at him. Beastboy sighed and hung his head. This sort of thing had been happening a lot lately, which it shouldn't be between people who were supposedly dating.

"Hey, Cy, I got a big, blue, virtual car with your name on it." sang Beastboy, waving the game-controller in front of Cyborg, who pushed it away and nodded in the direction of the kitchen, where the two Titans were. Beastboy caught on immediately,

"Cool, live theatre." he said and sat back to watch with the semi-mechanical crime-fighter. " Man, I can't decide if this is a comedy, or a tragedy." said Beastboy shaking his head.

"You shouldn't make fun of them." said Raven quietly, "We were like that, remember?" Beastboy turned to his estranged girlfriend, and, giving her his best cute-face, said

"I know, and it took a little outside help to get us together, so now, I'm just repaying the favour." Raven smiled slightly and shook her head.

For the past couple of weeks, Robin and Starfire had been exceptionately shy and clumsy around each other, and so had taken to avoiding each other, except of course, when they were working. Today however, the universe seemed to have taken it upon itself to cross their paths. With hilarious consequences.

Right now, they were both in the kitchen, which was rare in itself, but today the two infatuated souls must have missed a beat, because there was no denying the current state of things. Robin seemed to want to get to the fridge, and to do that he had to get past Starfire, who wanted to get a drink from the tap. Cyborg recalled the look on Robin's face when he had looked up from his file and seen Starfire stretching to get a glass. Panic, which gave way to open longing as his eyes roamed over her. While she was reaching like that, her clothes rode up an inch or so, exposing the elegance of her back, and the alluring planes of her thighs. Cyborg appreciate a pretty girl just as much as the next red-blooded male, but he just didn't feel that way about Starfire. That didn't mean Robin didn't. Cyborg was able to see him swallow hard and close his eyes, visibly reminding himself to breath.

And then it was over as Starfire found her glass and settled back on her heels, tugging her skirt back into place. Then she turned and found herself face to face with Robin, open file held forgotten in his hands. It was too late to avert her eyes, so she gave a small smile and headed for the sink. The only problem was, Robin was standing in the way, and he hadn't yet regained control of his fogged brain.

"Um, can I just…?" mumbled Starfire.

"Huh? Oh yeah sure, sorry." was the reply. Still trying to avoid eyecontact, Robin stepped to the right, but so did Starfire, so Robin went to the left, and Starfire went with him. Eventually they got past each other, and Starfire got her drink. However, on her way back to the living room, Starfire managed to knock the file from Robin's hands.

"Sorry!" cried Starfire

"It's alright, don't worry about it." said Robin. They both bent down to collect the scattered pages, and bumped their heads as they went. This time Cyborg couldn't hold it in, and he laughed, hard and loud. Robin looked up at him, curious and half-glad for the distraction.

"What's so funny?" he asked, generally clueless. Cyborg shook his head, and held up a hand.

"Nothing, man, nothing." he said, his laughter subsiding. Robin was going to pursue the issue, but Starfire handed him the complete file. He took it, mumbling a "thanks".

It was then that the Alarm went off, driving all other things from their minds. All five of them gathered before the big screen, where a picture of the Jump City grand museum appeared.

"A robbery," said Robin, he pressed a few buttons and the image changed to a live feed from the museums security cameras. "Warp." declared Robin, as he lay eyes on the man in the golden armour.

The T-car screeched to a halt outside the Museum's famed marble steps. The Titans jumped out and raced up to the impressive, glass, revolving doors. They made their way to the west wing, leaping over barriers and flying up stairs as they went. Finally, they arrived at their destination, The Aramaic exhibit. Inside, they spotted Warp carefully unloading the display cases into foam-filled boxes.

"Alright Warp, give it up." called Robin. Warp turned to them with a smug smile on his face.

"Titans, you're late, I was expecting you." he jeered.

"Can we go quietly this time? Or are we gonna have to do this the hard way?" asked Robin, pulling out his bo-staff for emphasis, secretly wanting Warp to give him a reason to fight..

"Poor, misguided Robin. Did you know the ancient Aramaic world believed that there were many dimensions, existing alongside ours?" replied Warp.

"What's your point?"

"My point is, that I don't intend to go with you at all." Here he pulled out a circular device, that looked suspiciously like the one that had sent Starfire into the future. Aiming it at the wall behind him, Warp pressed something, and the room began to shimmer.

"What is that thing?" said Beastboy in wonder. On the other side, there seemed to be their reflections, except they were dressed differently. The figures were blurry, but undeniably there. Warp grabbed the handles of the cases, and made for the portal. Robin started after him.

"No" he called as he made a desperate grab for Warp as he disappeared through the portal. Robin was just about to call the team into action and go after him, when someone came through the portal from the other side. He looked like Warp, except he was wearing a police uniform. He glanced up at Robin for a second, before staring back at the portal. The "reflections" were lined up and looking through at them. They could just see what looked like Warp running away in the opposite direction. Robin stepped up to the shimmering border, it looked like heat rising of the road on a hot day, or water running down glass. He laid his gloved hand on the surface just as his counterpart did the same. The echo on the other side of the barrier was clearer now, and Robin saw with a sense of foreboding that it looked just like him, but villainous. They both looked back at their teams. The Titans looked blank, but their reflections looked eager. A single, black-clad, leg appeared through the barrier. Quickly followed by an arm, then the whole body.

Robin stared in amazement at, well, at himself. The person before him was completely identical, except for the outfit. He wore black with steel plates on the wrists, forearms, legs and thighs. He had a silver utility-belt, and a yellow "T" emblazoned on the right corner of his chest. He also had a certain mischievous air about him. Robin stared in shock, and his reflection grinned back at him, looking him up and down with interest. Their attentions were drawn away from each other by a noise that sounded like someone clearing their throat through a synthesizer. Both heads turned back to the source of the sound and saw that on the other side of the barrier was a girl that looked like Starfire, but again an evil one. She had her hands on her hips and was looking expectant. Robin's mind was slowly beginning to realise that whatever was going on, wasn't good. The new Robin turned and put his hand back through the portal with a smile. Robin guessed what was coming before he saw the slender fingers coming through.

The other Robin tenderly handed through Starfire's copy. She wore a black mini-skirt and crop top that matched Starfire's perfectly and shone purple as if it was coated in amethyst, with boots that were tighter, sleeker and meaner. She had the silver wrist-guards and neck-plate, except instead of a green stone, her's were black. Her hair was also darker, instead of the shimmering scarlet Robin dreamt of, this was a sinister blood-red. Her eyes still sparked the same green, though the innocence was replaced by a look that simultaneously carried a threat yet said she was thinking naughty things about you. Robin was surprised to see his alter-ego's arm snake around her waist, and she leaned into him. Robin felt like he was being evaluated as the couple continued to look at him, the dark Starfire's eyes sliding over him lazily like a cat's.

Robin looked back at the other Titans, who were looking back equally astounded. The still blurry reflections of Beastboy and Cyborg on the other side of the dimensional rift seemed to look at each other, then they took a couple of steps back. Robin only had time to get out of the way before they came thundering through. The purple on Beastboy's outfit was gone, replaced by the darkest green, and he sported the same yellow T on his chest as his leader. His hair was longer and flopped down, covering his eye on one side. He turned to the stunned Robin and crossed his arms. Instead of radiating an endearing immaturity and goofiness like the Beastboy Robin knew, this one's whole attitude seemed to be waiting to answer any challenge presented to him, to the point of agression. Cyborg's body-plates, where they used to be white, were now black, making his presence ten times more threatening. His blue circuitry stood out like lightning, and his red eye was sinister.

Last but not least, the Raven still on the other side rolled her eyes dramatically and glided through. When she arrived, Robin was taken aback by her sheer confidence. She thrust her garnet cape aside, putting her hands on hips, revealing a black leotard. Her boots came up to her knees in a diamond at the front, with inches high heels. With a practised toss of her head, her hood fell back to unleash long, volumptious, violet hair. Her eyes glittered, and she obviously expected to be admired. Robin was made uneasy as she smiled coquettishly at him with bedroom eyes.

"Raven." The new Beastboy said quietly, but with an undertone of warning. Raven spun her head and look at him.

"Yes, sugarcane?" she said. Robin almost fell over. Sugarcane? He never thought he'd see the day when _Raven _called _Beastboy_ "Sugarcane". And it sounded so natural, rolling off her sultry tongue.

"Don't." he said. Was it possible that he was… _jealous_? Robin knew that Raven and Beastboy were dating in this dimension, was it possible they were in the next as well?

Raven pouted seductively and strolled over to him, swaying her hips and using her high heels to their full advantage. She stood facing his side and laid her hands on his shoulder. She kissed his cheek and said,

"Aw, come on baby, I was just playing, you know I only have eyes for you." She gave a coy smile. Her words seemed to carry a deeper meaning but Robin couldn't figure out how they possibly could. Her whole demeanor seemed to be about sex and lust. Beastboy put his arm around her waist, and she snuggled into his cheek. Beastboy smiled shyly, like a little boy getting teased about a crush, and Robin watched as the boy's resolve shrunk away to nothing.

In all the confusion, the policeman who had come through first had ran off. But Robin had bigger fish to fry, like who were these people in front of him? Assuming they had come from some parallel dimension, what were they like? Were they a threat? Where and for how long were they going to stay? Will the portal stay open? All these questions and more raced through his head creating a mixed atmosphere of curiosity and apprehension. Robin decided the most pressing question was whether or not they were going to stay. In his experience, portals tended to close, and they had no idea how to send them back if it did.

"Er, putting all other things aside," began Robin tentatively, shrinking as the gaze of all five of the skewed version of his team turned full-force onto him, "That portal's not gonna stay open forever." His reflection looked at the portal, then around the room, then at the Starfire at his side. They seemed to come to some sort of conclusion because he turned to Robin and said,

"That's okay, I think we'll stick around. This place has caught my interest."

"Okay" said Robin, completely at a loss. "Then I guess you'll be staying with us."

"I guess so."

Robin's mind was in turmoil and it didn't look like it would get any better. He needed time to think. Suddenly, inspiration hit.

"I'll just go and inform my team, then." He said, and before they could say anything in reply, he turned and hurried over to the Titans he knew and loved, but more importantly, knew.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_Back at the Tower…_

The silence was audible. The Jump City Titans just didn't know where to begin, whereas the new Titans seemed happy to just wait to take their hosts' lead, in fact they seemed to find their confusion amusing. They were all sitting in the common room, heroes on one side, anti-heroes on the other.

The new Robin was sitting in an arm chair, with his ankle resting on his knee, and his hands resting on his stomach, twiddling his thumbs, and looking at his counterpart patiently. His accompanying Starfire was sitting on the armrest, legs crossed and arm draped over the back. The black-clad Cyborg, Beastboy and Raven were standing behind the chair, flanking their leader and giving them all the look of an underwordly royal court, the king on his throne. Facing them, the Titans were seated on the couch, with Robin in the middle, Beastboy and Cyborg next to him, and the girls standing behind them.

As serene as the visitor-Robin seemed, his impatience, curiosity and urge to lead were slowly getting the better of him. Eventually, he said

"Well, there are some obvious differences between us, because otherwise, well that would be just plain dull. So why don't we start by talking about ourselves?" The Titans were startled at his voice. It was completely identical to Robin's.

"Yeah, 'cause you're so good at that." muttered Beastboy behind him. The young man in the chair shot him an amused pretend-dark look and his subordinate held up his hands defensively.

"Well, okay, why don't you start?" asked the resident Robin, unwilling to give anything away without knowing more about these visitors.

"Why don't you? Strategically, you pose more of a threat to us than we do to you." came the evasive reply.

"Do you always do that? Calculate the risks, and plan strategies for everything?" asked Starfire innocently. The boy in the chair looked at her as if he had just seen her, perhaps for a little longer than necessary. Robin didn't like it.

"What makes you say that? Just because I did it this time doesn't mean I do it every time." he said, flicking a suspicious glance at Robin.

"True, but you still haven't answered the question." she replied, giving him her winning smile. The stranger smiled in return and turned to Robin properly.

"She's smart." he said.

"You don't have to tell me." he said quietly. The other man turned back to Starfire,

"To answer your question, planning strategies and calculating risks is what a leader does, and if it keeps us alive…" he said, shrugging. Robin hadn't failed to notice the second quick but meaningful look he got as his twin answered.

"And what is it exactly that you do?" said Cyborg. The man laughed,

"That, I strongly suspect, is where our differences lie. Let's see if I'm right. You fight crime, don't you? You know, the whole "good triumphs over evil" thing? Complete with capes and witty one-liners?" he said.

Robin nodded reluctantly, and shrugged,

"Basically." he said, "Which means you're criminals." The dark Robin leaned forward in his chair to make their resemblance even more the mirror image.

"Bravo, Robin, we do indeed live outside the law, as you might say. But that doesn't necessarily make us bad people. You have to bear in mind that our Jump City is a very different place from yours. In fact, in our city, we _are_ the law. We make sure crime is just crime. I don't allow sadism in my town." The crime-_fighting_ Robin seemed to consider this, and size up his equivalent. Without any perceivable change in their expressions, their eye-contact suddenly became a vicious test of wills. Neither would bow to the other's authority and tension hung in the air like a storm.

"Oh man, am I hungry." declared the new, level-headed Beastboy, breaking the silence.

"My thoughts exactly." agreed the other Beastboy, looking both surprised and approving.

"You got any tofu?" asked his match.

"Do we ever!" cried Beastboy in reply, looking eager and bounding off towards the kitchen.

"Uh-uh man, I ain't eating none of that tofu stuff. Gimme meat every time!" said Cyborg. The more sinister Cyborg turned to him,

"Tell me about it man, that stuff ain't even food."

"Exactly" the blue Cyborg replied with a look of wonderment that someone finally understood his point of view. Then he turned back to the Beastboys. "So I think we've agreed. We're having steak." he finished.

"No way man, I can't eat meat, I've been most of those animals!" And so it went. Raven, the original one, shook her head. She jumped when a sugar-coated voice at her ear said,

"Adorable, aren't they?" It was the other Raven.

"What do you mean?"

"Beastboy, you gotta love him."

"No" It wasn't a denial, merely a dismissal. Just because they looked the same, didn't mean Raven had to share anything with her.

"No? So you're telling me you don't think about him at night when you're alone, or catch yourself holding your breath if you see him even come close to getting hurt?"

"What makes you think I do that?" asked Raven.

"Because I do."

"Oh yeah? Well you're wrong, you're nothing like me." She turned to walk away from the unsettling copy of herself, but her reflection caught up with her.

"Okay, okay, I can see you don't wanna talk about it. But I bet there's one thing we have in common." Her eyes were twinkling mischievously. "Wanna meditate with me?" Raven would've said no, but she didn't sense any malicious intent in her offer, and she was going to anyway. If they were going to be staying in the same house, it would make sense not to get off on the wrong foot. Besides, when was she likely to ever meet another half-demon from Azarath, even if it was herself.

"Okay"

"Cool," she seemed generally pleased, "where do you like to do it?"

"My room, it's always too loud anywhere else."

The new Raven laughed, "Tell me about it." she said. Together, they left the main room and made their way upstairs.

With them gone, and the Cyborgs and Beastboys still arguing in the kitchen, only the Starfires and Robins remained seated. Not for long though, because the darker Starfire was watching the other one curiously. The two Robins didn't notice, they were sulking. But she soon spoke,

"Koriand'r?" she said, making the others look at her. She was talking to her lighter Starfire counterpart. She said something short in Tamaranian. A look of happy surprise sprung to Starfire's features and she replied in Tamaranian. Soon the two were off by themselves speaking in fast Tamaranian with animated hand gestures, leaving one Robin with the other.

Not wanting to look at his other self, Robin sat and watched Starfire instead. Robin had been watching her for a minute or two, when his alter ego jumped in.

"For someone who spends so much time staring at her, you would think you wouldn't be so blind." he said.

"Excuse me?" replied Robin, flaring at his doppelganger's implied insult.

"Starfire. You love her, just like I do. Only I seem to have been the only one to do anything about it." he said proudly.

It was true that when Robin had seen his other self with the corresponding Starfire, it had made Robin's heart twinge and doubt his own reluctance to approach Starfire. God knows he loved her enough to lay everything on the line for her, but it was the rejection he wouldn't be able to bear. And how would that affect the team? The team had to come first, no matter how hard it was.

"Let me give you some advice, Robin." Robin wasn't sure he wanted to hear this. "Just go for it, take that leap of faith. You'll regret it if you don't. And if your Starfire is anything like mine, she won't turn you down."

"Thanks, but she's _nothing_ like your Starfire." he replied scathingly, before getting up and retreating to his room to think.

The Tofu vs Meat argument had subsided. The Cyborgs had agreed to monitor the cooking tofu while tending to their precious steaks, since both Beastboys felt they would lose their breakfast if they had to do the same to slabs of sizzling carcass. This left the young, green men to talk among themselves, and one thing in particular had been weighing on Beastboy's mind.

During the ride back to the Tower, the other Raven had been all over his counterpart, leaving Beastboy full of doubt and a strange loneliness. How was it that this Raven was so open and comfortable around the darker him, when his Raven was just as withdrawn and solitary as when they weren't dating?

He understood that her powers prevented her from expressing emotions too openly, but she could tell him how she felt, couldn't she? She could still touch him after all. Beastboy was disgusted with himself, and hated himself for being so selfish. He knew how guilty she felt, for not being able to be everything she thought a girlfriend should be. Time and time again he told her he was happy being able to be more than just her friend, but they'd been together for a while now, and he could tell she was starting to have doubts. He couldn't stand the thought of losing her, but he couldn't think of what to do to convince her of that. Their relationship had become more about trying to give Raven reasons to stay together, when he was quickly running out of them himself.

He remembered what he'd done about a week after they'd started dating. He thought maybe Raven was just waiting for him to make the first move, take control of the relationship. So, once they were alone, he'd pulled her to him and kissed her before she had time to react. She hadn't fought him or rejected him exactly, he even thought she'd begun to kiss him back, but then the lamp next to them shattered into a spray of porcelain shards. Beastboy remembered looking back at Raven, to laugh about it, but he only caught a glimpse of some deep frustration, before she pulled her hood up and pushed him away. It had taken weeks of grovelling and self-inflicted jokes to get her to hang-out with him again.

He decided to take it up with his alter ego.

"So, you and Raven, huh?" Subtlety never was his strong point.

"Yeah" he replied proudly, "Isn't she something?"

"She sure is. You know, out of all this," he gestured loosely at the room, "I think it's the Ravens that are the most unlike."

"What do you mean?"

Beastboy laughed sheepishly, "I couldn't help but notice your Raven seems a bit more… engaging, than mine."

The other Beastboy snorted bitterly, "Yeah, you and the rest of the world."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed, "Our Ravens aren't that different really. They just control their powers differently. Yours, I would guess, keeps all her emotions in an iron cage, and if they were to get out, things would explode. Mine, on the other hand, hides her emotions behind a mask of seduction. It's just the way she is. She isn't more open about herself than your's is." This new Beastboy's voice sounded just the same as the other one's, but it was completely steady, not fluctuating with jokes and emotion, and that made all the difference.

"Sorry for being shallow, but why is that a bad thing? At least she shows you she loves you."

"Perhaps, but then she loves everything and everyone. My girlfriend flirts with the entire world, and that's a bad thing. If you were to ask her what she thought of a movie, she'd say which actors she thought were hot."

"Oh, I think I get it now." Beastboy understood that perhaps his reflection's relationship wasn't any better than his, yet his soul was still heavy with wanting to find a way to help Raven. They were quiet for a minute and they both seemed introspective. Then the new Beastboy said,

"If there's one thing I've learned from being with Raven, it's to just give her time. She's probably as torn up about it as you are."

Beastboy was about to reply when Cyborg rapped him on the head, steak in hand, and said,

"I think your sorry excuse for food is done." Any further thought was overrode by his stomach.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The alarm rang, calling all ten Titans to the common-room. A down-town jeweller's was displayed on the screen.

"Finally, things are starting to look up." said the new Beastboy, earning an approving grin from his leader.

"Wait, you can't come with us!" said the original Robin.

"And why not?" said the black-clad Starfire, stepping forward defiantly with her hands on her hips. Robin met her eyes, but had to look away, he found the whole situation too weird, and he couldn't even talk to the Starfire he knew.

"I don't see the harm in letting them tag along." said Raven.

"Yeah, imagine the look on the crooks faces when they see 'em!" said Beastboy laughing. Robin still had his doubts. Then his match stepped forward.

"Don't underestimate my team, Robin, I don't underestimate yours." Robin thought about it, he had to admit that it was only fair, and Beastboy was right, he would love to see the looks on their faces.

"Alright fine, but don't do anything I wouldn't do." he said.

"That seems a bit unlikely, doesn't it?" was the reply, and with that they left, speeding towards down-town, the girls soaring through the sky above them.

The front window was smashed in, amateurs. The original Titans went right to work, jumping through the window to the show-room. Three men dressed in black with masks were hastily emptying the display cases, but they looked up when our heroes entered. There was that second of deer-in-the-headlights stillness when they decided to fight, run, or go quietly. The man nearest the Titans dropped his sack and drew two long swords from sheaths on his back. He made a big show of twirling them impressively before settling into a battle stance facing the group. The men behind him followed suite with other martial-arts weapons. Robin sighed as he pulled out his bo-staff and Starfire, Raven and Cyborg charged up,

"Why don't they ever wanna go the easy way?" he thought.

It was then that the other Titans chose to make their appearance, filtering in casually through the same broken window. Even through the masks, the Titans could see their amazement, and the man with the swords rubbed his eyes in the classic, cliched move. He called out behind him, and a fourth man stuck his head through the door to the back room, supposedly where the vault was. He stared for a moment before slowly retreating back behind the door in a hilarious maybe-they-didn't-see-me moment.

The men in front of them decided then was the time to attack and they charged. The girls took to the air but two of the men were amazingly light on the feet and balanced skilfully on the metal edges of the display cases, bringing them almost even in the low-ceilinged room.

Robin faced the man with the swords. He knew the girls could take care of themselves. Bo-staff at the ready, he waited. You always have to give the criminals the choice to do the right thing, before you take them out. The man was of medium build, with broad shoulders, but a narrow waist. Then, without warning, he charged. He was faster than Robin had expected him to be, and he quickly found himself on the defensive. One of the swords sliced his sleeve and cut his arm. Time to stop playing around. Robin jumped back to give himself space to maneouver, then went in for the attack. He got in a few good shots, but the man refused to go down.

Questions were forming in Robin's mind. Who were these guys? Why did this robbery smack of an amateur job, when these guys were obviously anything but? Why was a ten against three fight taking so long? These thoughts abandoned him however, when the door to the backroom smashed open and the man from before stepped out.

In his hands he had two large, automatic machine guns, with bullet-belts hanging from them. The man also had two spare bullet-belts crossing his chest, hanging funny on his skeletally-thin frame. Dressed all in black, with the guns and ammo, he looked very Rambo-esque. His greasy, straw coloured hair fell in front of his eyes, which currently held a very determined look.

Robin only had a second to take in this extreme sight. It registered just as the room began being showered with bullets and plaster. The thieves threw themselves behind the display cases, using the bullet-proof glass to their advantage. Robin threw himself onto the floor, and quickly looked around for his team-mates.

Raven was holding her own in the far corner, surrounded by a dome of black energy. Robin's world ground to a halt as he saw Starfire trying to help one of the thieves who had somehow managed to get pinned to the wall by his own daggers. She was directly across from the maniac with the guns, and horribly exposed. Robin almost got up to get her himself, but at the last second, Cyborg slid in front of her, the bullets bouncing off his metallic parts. Robin felt like he could have hugged him at that particular moment. Movement to his right caught his eye, and he smiled to see a green snake slither past him, being careful to stick to the wall.

He reached down to get a magnesium flare from his belt. He waited, and was rewarded when the shooting stopped as the man cried out and grabbed his ankle. Robin threw the flare at the man's feet and it exploded it a blinding flash. The man staggered back, temporarily blinded. Robin leapt at him, and knocked him out with a single blow.

In the sudden quiet, Robin assessed the situation. The new Titans were nowhere to be seen, Starfire had almost been killed, they only had two of the four men who had broken in, and the rest had gotten away with the jewellery. This wasn't one of Robin's good days. Beastboy morphed back into himself with a woosh next to him, but wisely didn't say anything. Cyborg was holding the man who was now free from the wall with his hands behind his back.

The sound of sirens approaching was music to his ears.

"Come on, Team, the cops can take it from here. And I get the feeling we want to be back at the Tower..." With that they all left the ruined store, stepping over bits of debris as they went

The sight that greeted the Titans as they arrived at the common-room was both expected and disappointing. The other Titans were indeed there, Robin sitting in the armchair again, with Starfire sitting in his lap. She wore a huge emerald and gold necklace, and she seemed _very_ pleased with it. The only word to describe what they were doing was "canoodling". A mixture of giggles, kisses, and teasing that made your stomach turn. Across the room, Raven was eyeing her new ruby ring, with matching earrings and bracelet, throwing in an appreciative kiss or hug for Beastboy. Cyborg was sitting on the ground, sorting through the uncut diamonds.

They looked up, however, when their irate hosts walked in.

"Where the hell were you?" accused Robin. His alter ego eyed him for a second, before tapping Starfire on the thigh, and she reluctantly slid off him. He stood and faced himself.

"We went after the two that made off with the jewellery." he stated. He wasn't looking for a fight, but he sure as hell wasn't about to back down.

"Was this before or after it started raining lead?" Robin spat.

"What?" Judging by the expression on his face, the other Robin honestly didn't know what had happened.

"While you were off chasing the jewels, some wacko with two fully automatic, army-grade machine guns opened fire on us." Robin was really getting in his face now, and you could almost see the conscious decision to fight fire with fire.

"Woah, calm down, you're making me look bad. I'm sorry if I thought you could handle a couple of common thieves, apparently I was wrong." They both narrowed their eyes. The others watched apprehensively. If it came to a fight, they could both get seriously injured, but they couldn't interfere without undermining their leaders authority. Which they knew they hated.

"Maybe you'd like to know that while you were off scoring gifts for your girlfriends, Starfire was almost killed!" said the original Robin. Starfire blushed and looked at her feet, embarrassed at suddenly being the centre of attention. The dark Robin made a big show of looking past the fuming young man in front of him to the wilting girl behind him.

"I'm sorry if you could've been hurt, Starfire," he said before looking back at his identical twin. "but I fail to see how that's my fault."

"You should have been there!" shouted Robin, poking him in the chest. Starfire held up her hand tentatively, trying to draw enough attention to herself to calm things down, but she was ignored. The other Robin slowly leant in even further, if that was possible.

"Don't you mean, _you_ should've been there? Isn't that what this is really about, Robin?" The air around them was chilled and more than silent, like space, everyone wishing they weren't there but paying the closest attention nonetheless, and the two Robins were a volatile star right in the middle of it.

"Don't twist this around. You're the one who values some cheap trinket over Starfire's safety." The dark Starfire fingered her necklace worriedly.

"Don't you dare say that!" he said, pushing Robin, "Starfire is priceless to me, and you know it. So stop talking trash about what you don't know," he smirked, "no matter how much you wanna know about it."  
"Shut up" said Robin quietly, drawing his staff. The other Robin drew his. The situation was escalating rapidly out of control, and if the Titans didn't do something soon…

The two Robins began circling each other, and were about to charge when their respective Starfires ran in front of them.

"Robin, stop this!" shouted the dark Starfire, throwing her arms out to the sides to block his view.

"Robin, don't! Fighting him won't help anything." said the other Starfire. The criminal Starfire moved forward slowly and laid her hands on her boyfriend's chest.

"Don't do this." she said quietly. He looked down at her and softened. He contracted his staff and put it away, then took her hands in his.

"Okay, Star." He said, leaning his forehead against hers, "You always did have this affect on me." he said, laughing softly.

Meanwhile, the good Robin's attention was drawn to the girl in front of him, her silent pleading cooling his anger. He looked at her reluctantly, at the worry in her eyes, then back at his counterpart, considering, then he too put away his staff.

"Thank you" said Starfire in front of him.

"I just don't want you to worry." he replied gruffly, running a nervous hand through his hair. Starfire smiled weakly at him. That had been too close.

Robin looked past her at his somewhat occupied counterpart.

"I think it's time you left." he said.

"You're probably right." replied the young man, with Starfire still in his arms. He laughed, "How stupid would it be if we killed each other?" he said. Robin did saw the humour in it, but didn't feel like laughing just then.

"Er, hate to rain on this little love fest you guys seem to have going there, but just how are we supposed to get back?" asked the black-clad Beastboy.

"Easy" replied his leader, "we'll just find Warp."

"But Warp went through the portal, he's on your side now." said Robin.

"Ah no, that was your Warp, we're looking for Detective Jonathan Warp of the JCPD. That skid-mark of a cop that came through before us."

Now Robin remembered, having totally forgotten about the man he'd seen only briefly before he met his twin.

"Okay, and where do we find him?" asked the old Beastboy.

"Birds of a feather flock together, BB. The police department." said the other Robin.

"Okay, duh." Beastboy agreed.

All the Titans headed for the door, but Robin hung back.

"Hey, Robin. You okay?" asked Cyborg.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'm fine." he replied. Cyborg nodded and began to walk away.

"Uh, Cyborg?" Robin called. Cyborg turned,

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for saving Starfire." he said, avoiding eye-contact.

"Anytime." said Cyborg, and the two of them went and caught up with the others.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The Titans were all standing outside the Jump City Police Station. Night was falling and a warm wind floated past. Robin had the bags of stolen jewels in his hands. He had insisted that they turn them in.

"You should probably be the ones to go get him." said the dark Robin.

"Why? He knows you."

"Yeah that's kind of the problem. We don't exactly get along, him being a cop and all." he said. "Besides, this guy's as yellow as Beastboy is green. He takes one look at us and he'll run for the hills." The original Robin sighed, but started his way up the steps to the door, with his team behind him.

Inside, he approached the front desk.

"Titans!" cried the officer at the desk. "What brings you here?" Robin dunked the bags in front of the man and said,

"We found these near the jeweller's that was robbed. Thought we should return them." said Robin, missing out the part about his alter ego stealing them.

"Oh. Well thanks a lot Robin, the man who owns the store's sure gonna be pleased."

"We were also hoping to find a policeman, who's, er, new in town. His name's Jonathan Warp, is he here?" he asked.

"Sure, he came in here." said the man, nodding helpfully. "He wasn't making much sense, and he wasn't in our computers, so we were keeping him in one of the interrogation rooms until a shrink got here."

"Do you mind if we talk to him?" Robin knew what being a Titan could get you in Jump City, but it never hurt to ask.

"Sure, I don't see any harm in it. You are the Titans after all." said the officer, winking at them. Robin smiled as best he could, and followed the man to the room Warp was being kept in.

The interrogation room was one of many, all on the same corridor. The could see Warp through the double-sided mirror, which was next to a cold, steel door. He was clutching a blanket around him, with a mug of what Robin presumed was coffee in his hand. Robin found it hard to look past the resemblance this man had to the Warp he knew.

"There he is. You just knock on the door when you're done." said the officer, unlocking the door and holding it open for the crime-fighters.

Warp looked up when they came in and put his coffee down. He straightened his back, taking the defensive approach. The door closed behind them, and Robin took the seat opposite Warp.

"You know who we are, don't you?" he asked. Warp nodded nervously, glancing at the other Titans behind Robin.

"You're this dimension's Teen Titans." he said.

"That's right. We're here because we want to send the other Titans home, and we think you might know how to do that." Robin kept his voice low and steady, this guy was obviously scared of them. It made him wonder what his counterpart had done to him.

"Wh- What makes you think that?" he said, trying to laugh, and failing.

"It was our Warp that opened the portal in the first place."

"That doesn't necessarily mean that –"

Robin cut him off, "Do you know how, or not?" he said, allowing a little edge to come into his voice. Warp stilled, and looked at him for a moment.

"Even if I did know how the portal worked, why would I want to send those terrors back? Jump City is better off without them."

"But they don't belong here." said Robin.

"Besides, don't you want to go home too?" asked Raven.

Warp looked at her, "Home? Home to what? A crummy appartement, a tv dinner and broken pipes? Thanks, but no thanks." he said.

"Surely there must be someone who will miss you?" said Starfire.

"Well, there is my dog, I suppose." At hearing this, Beastboy morphed into a dog a trotted lovingly up to Warp's leg. He barked at him, and tilted his head to one side questioningly. Warp laughed and laid his hand on the dog's head.

"You guys are way nicer than the other Titans." he said.

"So will you help us?" asked Robin.

Warp sighed heavily. "I guess I have to. Can't let those delinquents loose on this city aswell."

"Great" said Robin, and Cyborg banged on the door to be let out.

They took him back to the Tower, where he and Cyborg worked on duplicating Warp's device. The two different sets of Titans basically stayed within themselves until Cyborg and Warp were finished, wanting to avoid a repeat of that afternoon.

But once the machine was completed, they all gathered in the common room. Our Titans faced the others as Warp set up the device.

"Well, Robin, It's been interesting." said the dark Robin, extending his hand which Robin shook. The Starfires exchanged some Tamaranian words of goodbye and a cordial hug. Then a loud hum announced that the inter-dimensional portal was ready and waiting. They could see the common room of the parallel Tower through the distorting portal, and the alien Titans felt a collective pang of homesickness. The dark Robin looked at Warp,

"You go first." he said.

"Fine." Warp replied. He looked at the portal dubiously then slowly stuck a foot through. When it came through safely on the other side, he eased the rest of his body through. As soon as he was sure he was unharmed, he ran out of the room.

"Well, Team, let's go." said the other Robin. However, just as he approached the portal, the lights flickered before all the light-bulb simultaneously exploded. The portal gave off a faint glow, but it was still so dark the Titans couldn't see their own hands in front of their faces.

"Quick, you have to go through, without Warp I don't know if I can get it to work again!" cried Cyborg.

"Er, okay, hang on." they heard a Robin say.

"Raven, where are you?" called a Beastboy, and they heard two answering "here"-s.

"Starfire?" called one of the Robins, and he was rewarded with a light "here, Robin".

"Okay, take my hand."

Then they heard a slight change in the hum of the portal along with some movement, and then the portal fizzed dangerously and disappeared with a bang, followed by a distraught "NO!" from Starfire.

Robin quickly felt his way to the kitchen and got a torch. Shining it over to where the portal had been he saw Raven kneeling on the floor looking shocked, and an unmoving Starfire. The problem was, they were the wrong ones.

Robin felt sick as his fears were confirmed. He vaulted the kitchen counter and stood next to the shaking Starfire. He looked into the empty space that had held the portal. "Cyborg, start it up again." he shouted.

"I don't know how, man!"

"Find out!"

Robin turned back to the room before him, shaking his head. He looked down at the girl by his shoulder, who's hands were curled into fists as she trembled with emotion, her eyes shut and her lips pressed tightly together. He turned away from her and marched from the room.

Beastboy slowly stepped forward and laid a hand on Raven's shoulder.

"Don't worry, we'll fix this." he said softly. Black coils of energy burst from her, exploding things all around them. Raven spun around, four red eyes glaring at him dangerously,

"Don't touch me!" she shrieked. Beastboy backed away and she sunk into the floor as a black silhouette.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_This dimension_

Robin spent the whole of the next day in his study. He stared at a map of Jump City, searching desperately for anything that might help them get Starfire and Raven back. Both Warps were in the other dimension, and Cyborg couldn't fix the device on his own. Robin slammed his fist onto the table in frustration. He hated the helplessness he felt, and he was heavy with desperation. He couldn't stand the thought of his Starfire in that hopeless place that he knew absolutely nothing about.

Someone knocked on his door. He kept quiet, hoping they'd get the message, but instead the door opened slightly and that other Starfire stuck her head in.

"There you are, Robin." she said, stepping into the room and shutting the door. Robin couldn't stand to look at her. She was like a cruel trick that God was playing on him. She looked and sounded like the perfect girl he loved, but she wasn't. She was a criminal, the complete opposite of everything Robin stood for. He knew it wasn't her fault, and that she was probably just as distraught as he was, but he didn't care.

"I don't remember inviting you in." he said darkly, still not looking at her.

"I thought I could help." she said, and he heard her jump up to sit on the desk behind him.

"No thanks." he said. She didn't say anything for a moment, and Robin hoped he'd upset her enough for her to leave, but then she said,

"Fine. I'll just stay here and keep you company then." Robin gritted his teeth,

"I prefer to be alone." he said, his words sounding very controlled. Again there was another pause, and Robin was sure she knew what he was trying to do, so why did she insist on staying?

"You know," she began, and Robin groaned loudly, fearing a lecture, but she just continued as if she hadn't heard, "My Robin used to be like you."

_Surprise, surprise _thought Robin.

"He would dedicate every waking moment to work, spend hours in his study in the dark, and shun the rest of us. But then he realised something."

"Oh yeah? And what would that be?" said Robin.

"That the world wouldn't fall to pieces if he let himself be happy."

Robin turned around and looked at her. She kept her face serious, and was looking at him meaningfully. Robin just snorted disdainfully and turned back around.

"Whatever" he muttered, and went back to the map. He picked up his pencil and returned to trying to find a loop-hole, something he'd been missing. He'd just submerged himself in his work when he was broken out of it again.

"You should try it sometime." he heard Starfire say behind him. He sighed and decided to try humouring her into going away.

"Try what?" he asked.

"Try letting the world take care of itself for once, while you sit back and enjoy life."

Robin frowned, who was she to tell him how to live life? She didn't know him.

"Look," he said, throwing down his pencil "I know this is all one big joke to you, but I'm serious about getting Starfire back, so if you'd just leave me alone and let me get back to work…"

There was a long silence, then,

"How _dare_ you say that? That I'm not serious about getting home? Do you think I wanna be stuck here with you, in a strange dimension? You may love Starfire, but I love Robin, and I would do anything to see him again. And if you don't understand that, well, then I think I've overestimated you. I _thought_ you were a nice guy."

Her words were tense and controlled, thrumming with anger. Robin knew he'd gone too far, and he scowled as he felt bad for her. He heard her slide off the desk and walk towards the door. Swallowing his pride, he called out to her,

"Starfire?" She stopped and turned back to him with her hands on her hips.

"What?" she spat.

"Can you help me with this?" he said, motioning to the big map in front of him. He could see her think about it, and eventually she trudged over. He smiled at her, and she just gave him a sceptical look. He could see why his alter ego liked her

so much.

_The other dimension_

Cyborg stared worriedly at his leader, as his leader stared back at where the portal had been. The startled girl whose hand he held's eyes were darting all around the room. Meanwhile Beastboy and the new Raven were looking each other up and down disapprovingly, then they both looked away.

"Oh crud." they said in perfect timing.

Cyborg knew when to keep his mouth shut, and this was one of those times. Eventually, Robin cleared his throat and said,

"Well, I'm sure you're all tired, so why don't we call it a night?" his eyes were frighteningly wide and empty, and his voice was weak and slow. He dropped the girl's hand and walked forward and through the automatic doors. Starfire looked over at Raven. She looked worried, and Cyborg felt sorry for her.

"Don't worry, we'll get you home." he said, but she could only nod. Raven drifted slowly over to her,

"Come on, Star, we'll deal with this in the morning. Let's just go to bed for now."

She began to lead Starfire away, but stopped and looked back at Beastboy.

"Is it okay if we use the other girls' rooms?" she said.

"I guess, they'll probably be doing the same. But be warned, Raven's room is pretty creepy." he replied.

"Just the way I like it." said Raven, turning around. Then she left with Starfire following close behind her.

The next day, Robin called all the Titans to the common room to decide what they would do.

"Well, we have both Warps somewhere in the city, and we're going to need at least one of them, so BB and Raven can go after the one from the other dimension, the criminal one, and Starfire and Cyborg can track down the cop."

"And what'll you be doing?" asked Cyborg.

"I'll be… visiting some friends." he said ominously and Beastboy and Cyborg nodded.

As Cyborg and his charge drove silently through the city, Starfire wondered what Robin had meant earlier. She decided to ask.

"Cyborg?" she said timidly.

"Yeah?"

"Who are these friends that Robin has gone to visit?"

Cyborg looked shifty, "They're not really his friends, Star, they're the city's crime-lords. He'll have gone to see them to see if they've heard anything about Warp."

"Oh, I see." Starfire was sad to hear her hero consorting with criminals, but she told herself this wasn't her Robin, this Robin _was_ a criminal. "And does Robin enjoy going to see these people?" she asked, dreading the answer.

Cyborg sighed, "No, he doesn't." Starfire was relieved, but then she began to feel sorry for this world's Robin. She knew how much Robin burdened himself trying to do what needed to be done, and she only wished he would let her help him.

Cyborg had decided not to tell his guest just what Robin became when he met these people. He lost control, he saw the evil, corruption and injustice that rotted this city and he took it upon himself to dispense justice, fight fire with fire, and he became a thousand times worse. An unstoppable force, he'd come home late with blood staining his gloves and void of any regret. Something horrible had happened to him to deprive that young man of any kind of child-hood, and now all that was left was a monster without a conscience. Cyborg suspected Robin of hideous crimes but he'd never asked. That was before he and Starfire had hooked up. When he was with her he was closer to normal than Cyborg had ever seen him. He'd joke and smile. There were no more late night excursions. Starfire was his sanity, and now she was gone, he was terrified of what would happen.

They spent the rest of the journey in silence, with Starfire staring out the window. The Jump City rushing past her window was definitely _not _the one she had come to call home. The buildings were in serious disrepair and litter lined the streets. Even the sky seemed darker.

"We're here." said Cyborg, his voice pulling Starfire back to reality as he stopped the car.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, Beastboy and Raven weren't having much luck. Their next stop was Arkham Asylum. Beastboy had a theory that since the policemen in Raven's dimension had thought Warp was crazy, maybe his had too. And in his Jump City, that only meant one thing. A one way ticket to the loony bin.

They touched down silently on the front step and Beastboy morphed back into a human. Raven honestly thought the castle was cool, but only because it was so creepy. It was built on a hill among some mountains, which were supposed to be picturesque, but instead only added to the disturbing atmosphere by blocking out the sun, casting a permanent shadow. The black, wrought-iron gates stood at the foot of the hill, opening to a jagged path that crossed the yard like a scar. Dead trees scratched at the sky like desperate fingers, added to by the racing wind that whistled like a scream through the mountains and the only thing that seemed alive was the ivy creeping up one side of the castle like an all-consuming cancer. The castle itself was built of stone, complete with turrets, and Raven couldn't help but notice the black bars on all the windows.

Beastboy pushed the door open and they stepped inside. The reception area was that clinical off-white spotted with mould, and was lit by two rows of weak, flickering halogen lights. Hard, plastic seats lined the walls on either side of them, but apart from that the room was bare. At the far end, a receptionist sat at a counter, flicking through a magazine. Two corridors led off behind her, one left, one right.

They walked up to the woman at the desk. She was a mean looking woman with a sunken face, and black hair pulled tightly back in a bun. She was chewing gum absent-mindedly.

"Has a man named Warp been committed?" asked Beastboy, without a word of greeting. The woman flicked her eyes up to look at him emotionlessly, then she slowly shook her head. Beastboy nodded and stepped away from her, and her eyes slid back down to her magazine.

"Great, now what?" said Raven when they were safely out of ear shot. Beastboy seemed to be thinking.

"Since we don't have any more leads, I want to show you something. Wait here." And with that Beastboy left Raven standing in the silent hall. She saw him morph into a bird and fly off outside. She was standing there maybe ten minutes, and was feeling just about ready to give him a piece of her mind, when he reappeared, this time with a beautiful white lily in his hands.

He rushed up to her and she eyed the flower suspiciously, but he pretended it wasn't even there.

"Come on." he said and he took her hand and led her past the woman and along one of the corridors. She felt funny holding his hand, but she didn't say anything. She was trying to get more used to being touched.

"Was there a Terra in your world?" he asked, flicking his hair out of his eyes.

"Yes."

"What happened to her?"

"She betrayed us, then redeemed herself, but in doing so she died." Raven abbreviated.

Beastboy just nodded. They headed up some stairs, then along another corridor to a cell at the end. The door was thick metal, with a small window and bars set into it. Beastboy slowed, and his whole demeanor seemed to sadden and assume a quiet respect. He headed up to the bars and Raven hung back, feeling that somehow she was intruding on something deeply personal. Beastboy looked back at her, obviously expecting her to come forward, so she slowly closed the distance she'd been keeping.

Raven could see the cell had dirty, padded walls and a feeling of dread settled over her. Against the opposite wall, a girl sat motionless. She was wearing a straight jacket and pale blue, hospital slacks. Her blond hair was a tangled mess, and her blue eyes stared emptily forward.

Terra.  
Raven looked at the young man beside her, who was staring into the cell, lost in thought.

"What happened to her?" Raven asked softly.

"She used to be one of us," he began quietly, " a Titan. But then she made a deal with the police, one that would send us all to jail, but would get her father out. But at the last moment she backed out. They didn't like that." His words were becoming more and more bitter. "So they caught her, locked her up, and did everything in their power to get her to _reconsider_. They tortured her, threatened her, and when she refused to cooperate, they stuck her in here. The highest room in the tallest tower." His speech was punctuated with long pauses between the sentences, as if he was only thinking aloud. "Being this far away from the earth affected her mind. She threw fits and was deemed as dangerous. Electro-shock therapy did the rest. They didn't understand her, nobody did, and now look at her." Tears glistened on his cheeks.

Raven said nothing. Sometimes, when people open their hearts to you, all you can do is listen.

"I come up here every Sunday, hoping that she'll recognise me, show some sign that she's still Terra." He sighed deeply, as if he was wary to the bone. "She never does." Suddenly he turned to Raven and looked her in the eyes with a raw hurt. "Open up to him, Raven, he deserves it." he said, and Raven didn't need to ask who he was talking about.

Beastboy.

"It's not that simple." she said quietly.

"Isn't it? Or are you just afraid?" said Beastboy accusingly. Raven glared at him. _That wasn't fair. He can't assume to know me after two hours _ she thought. She retaliated before she could stop herself.

"No, it's not that simple. Don't think you know me Beastboy, because you don't. I'm nothing like your whore girlfriend."

"_Don't _call Raven a whore, because she's not. You're not the only one with problems, she just deals with hers differently." he said back. The two glared at each other, before realising that they were being childish.

"I'm sorry. I'm just frustrated. Coming up here takes a lot out of me." said Beastboy.

"I know, and I'm sorry too." replied Raven. Beastboy looked back at the cell and the broken girl inside one last time, before sliding the beautiful lily between the bars so that it hung there, and turning away, they walked back down the corridor together.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Dusk was falling over the decrepit Jump City. Starfire sat on the roof of the fraudulent Titans Tower, having returned from her day with Cyborg empty handed. She clasped her knees to her chest and rested her chin on them. The prospect that she might have to stay in this alternate world was nagging at her consciousness, but she pushed it away. She would get home, she would see her friends again, she would see Robin again, she couldn't doubt it.

And yet she did.

Starfire hugged herself closer. She felt like crying, she couldn't stay _here_. And what was her counterpart doing in her place? What if she was hurting her friends? Or what if her friends liked that Starfire more than her? She remembered the first time Blackfire had come to Earth. All her friends had liked her sister almost immediately, even Raven. But then Robin had come to her, and convinced her to stay by explaining just what she meant to them, to him. Starfire felt that familiar warmth inside her from the memory, which just made her sadder.

The door behind her opened, and Starfire quickly looked behind her to see who it was. She sighed as she saw it was Robin, so like the man that held her heart, and yet so different.

"Oh, hey Starfire," he said when he saw her. "Er, if you'd rather be alone, I can-"

"You may stay." she said sadly. She heard him walk across the tarp to sit next to her after a slight hesitation. They sat in silence for a moment, looking out at the distant sun sinking below the horizon.

"Something troubling you?" said Robin, looking over at her.

"I am worried I shall never see my friends again." she said.

"Don't worry, we will find a way to get you home." She wasn't convinced, but Starfire was touched that he would try to comfort her. "If it helps," continued Robin, "I'm sure Robin misses you too."

Starfire looked up at him in surprise, "What makes you say that?" she said. He laughed,

"I've see the way you two act around each other. It doesn't take a genius to see that you two like each other."

"Robin likes me only as a friend." Starfire said sullenly.

"Are you telling me you honestly haven't notice how protective and shy and _jealous_ he gets when you're concerned?" Starfire remained silent as she realised she couldn't deny it.

"It's beyond me why you guys don't hook up, me and Starfire did, and we're doing great."

"Robin does not have time for a girlfriend." Starfire told him, and herself.

"Is that what you think? Look, all you gotta do is get him alone, get nice and close" Robin wiggled his shoulders and scooted closer to emphasise his point, making Starfire laugh, and look away. "touch him a little, doesn't matter where, and he'll snap like a twig, I guarantee it."

Starfire laughed again and looked back at the man beside her. This Robin was so much more carefree than the one she knew. He was looking at her with an easy grin, telling her he was glad he had successfully cheered her up. She was suddenly aware just how close they were, and she blushed. Slowly he began to lean towards her, and she reflexively leant back a little, but still their lips met.

Starfire's brain was on overdrive. She was trying to come up with what to do next, while still trying to convince herself this wasn't happening. Vaguely she remembered the romantic films she'd seen, where all the women would close their eyes and tilt their heads when they were being kissed, so that's what she did. Unfortunately, this made her more aware of Robin. Suddenly her brain blanked, with one thought prominent like a flash of lightning in a storm-blackened sky.

This wasn't her Robin.

This was a different Robin, and he was kissing her, which you're only supposed to do with people you have feelings for. And if you have feelings for someone else, you're definitely not supposed to do it.

Starfire jerked away, "Stop!" she cried, her voice still portraying her initial shock. Robin quickly looked away, and sighed. He put his head in his hands and said,

"Oh God, Starfire I'm sorry. I just… I really miss Star, my Star. I've had a crap day, meeting with everything that's wrong with this city, and usually Starfire's here and she helps me cope with it all. But she's not here, and I don't know if she ever will be again. And I just wanted to… forget, everything, if only for a moment. But what am I saying? There's no excuse…" He sighed again and looked back at her, "Starfire, can you forgive me?" he said, obviously embarrassed. Starfire nodded,

"I forgive you" she said slowly. He grinned at her,

"Thanks, oh and if you could, don't tell Robin, or he'd _really_ kick my ass."

Starfire was about to agree, when the door behind them opened.

"Robin! We found him." said Cyborg. Robin leapt up and Starfire followed.

Downstairs, Raven and Beastboy kept a firm hold on the Warp Starfire recognised as the one from her dimension. He was looking distinctly peeved and was grumbling softly to himself, but Starfire felt she could laugh when she saw him.

"Where was he?" asked Robin.

"He was trying to fence these." answered Beastboy, holding up one of the cases from the museum. "Except no-one would believe they were real since they're still in the museum here."

"Well great, and since it's him, we don't have to build a new device, we can just use his." said Robin, smiling at Starfire.

"Why should I help you?" spat Warp. Raven sighed and said,

"Think about it, what good what it do you not to? And if you help, we won't beat you up before we throw you in jail."

"You wouldn't, you're the good ones, remember?" he replied.

"But we're not." said Cyborg, cracking his knuckles threateningly. Warp looked away from him with a snarl, which they took as a yes. With a prod in the back from Raven, he begrudgingly opened the portal.

The shimmering veil appeared before them. They saw Cyborg wander into the kitchen on the other side, and stop dead as he saw them. He rushed back out the door and a moment later ran back in, this time accompanied by all the other Titans. The resident Robin, the one who had kissed Starfire, ran through into the other dimension and grabbed his Starfire in a powerful embrace. He swung her around and she wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him. The two Ravens passed each other as they crossed over, the blue Raven dragging an uncooperative Warp. Starfire floated through slowly, suddenly shy.

Once they had all settled down a bit, the Robins turned to each other.

"It's been a pleasure." said the dark Robin, extending his hand with a joking tone and a grin. Robin smiled and shook it. Then the other Robin wrapped his arm around his Starfire's waist and walked back through the portal, Rubbing his nose against as they exchanged gentle murmurings. Just as they were going to close the portal, the cases from the museums came flying through to land at Raven's feet. She looked up startled, and saw the other Beastboy grinning mischievously at her through the portal. Then the portal shrunk into nothingness.

It suddenly seemed very quiet. Starfire was looking at her feet, she was glad to be back, but for some reason she felt… unfinished. Before she could explore this feeling further, she felt a presence behind her, and turned to see Robin standing behind her.

"It's good to have you back, Star." he said, sheepishly. Starfire had a sudden urge to throw her arms around his neck, and she would have had it been anyone else, but she refrained, and settled for smiling and saying,

"It's good to be back, I missed you… all" Starfire blushed as she spoke. _That was weird, why couldn't I tell him I missed him?_ she thought. Robin looked like he was about to say something, but they were distracted by Beastboy and Raven. They were just finishing tieing Warp up, and were standing side by side, when Beastboy looked away for a minute, and Raven kissed him quickly on the cheek. He jumped and stared openly at her, but she was already looking away, paying unnecessary attention to her knots.

"Don't say anything." she said darkly. Beastboy's face split into a huge grin,

"I wasn't going to." he said, gently taking her hand. She glanced back at him and he gave her a quick peck on the lips. Her eyes widened in shock then narrowed in a snarl, but Beastboy just laughed and went back to tieing Warp up.

"Oh please" Warp muttered, earning him a kick from the happy couple.

Hours later, once Warp had been turned in and all the goods had been returned to the museum, Starfire wandered the corridors nervously. She was debating with herself whether or not she should take the alternate Robin's advice.

_What harm can it do? If he likes me, it'll work, and if he doesn't, it'll help him see me as a girl instead of just a friend... Okay, Starfire, be brave._

Taking a deep breath to steel her nerves, she continued down the hall to Robin's room. She knocked on the door and took another breath, trying to make herself at least look normal. When the door opened and her eyes fell on Robin's strong form, her mind emptied.

"Oh, hey Starfire" he said innocently, "What's up?"

_Uh-oh_, Starfire realised she hadn't thought of a reason for her to be there.

"Er, can I come in?" she asked hopefully. He looked a bit puzzled, but stepped back,

"Sure" he said, motioning her inside. She walked in quietly, keeping her eyes averted. Unfortunately, being in his room just made things worse. His scent was everywhere, calming and reassuring, yet distinctly male. It gave her goosebumps. She let out a shuddering breath.

"Is something wrong?" said Robin's voice behind her.

"No, nothing is wrong" she replied. She turned to face him and considered her plan of action. She would need to get close to him, close enough to touch. She looked around the room, hoping to see something that might help her. She tried to remember the last time she was close enough to touch him.

The kitchen.

Her eyes fell on a file sitting on the nearby desk. Perfect. She picked it up,

"Are you going to write a report on this? The other dimension, and everything?" she said it perfectly normally, but she cocked her hips and kept eye contact. Robin held her gaze for a moment, but ultimately looked away. It made Starfire a little unsure.

"I suppose so." Robin replied. Starfire took a few inconspicuous (she hoped) steps towards him.

"I'd better give this back to you then." This time she backed her movements up with her voice, making it huskier and softer. She was closer than she needed to be to give the file back, so Robin looked up at her, only to be met with two sparkling emerald eyes, which silenced him completely. He moved to take the folder from her, but she dropped accidently-on purpose. And just as she'd expected, he bent down to get it, and so did she. Her hand brushed his as they both reached for it, and his hand jerked back as if he'd been electrocuted. Starfire picked the file up and stood, pretending to lose her balance bringing them even closer together. Starfire smiled at him,

"I'll just leave this here." she said, laying the file on the desk, leaning unnecessarily close to him to do so. There couldn't have been more than a couple of inches between them.

Meanwhile, Robin's brain was fighting his body for control, and losing. Having Starfire this near, and in _his bedroom_ was wreaking havoc with his self-control. What was she doing? Did she know what affect this was having on him? He wanted to think she did, and was doing it on purpose, but his brain kept interfeering. Damn brain. All he wanted to do was take her in his arms and kiss her till she couldn't see straight.

Starfire was getting worried, why hadn't anything happened yet? Was she doing something wrong? Maybe she just get out while she still could… Surely if Robin liked her, he wouldn't be able to resist this much physical contact. _He must not like me…_she thought sadly. And with that thought in mind, she stepped back from Robin, said goodnight, and was about to leave when his hand shot out and caught her wrist. She looked up at him, and he silently moved forward.

Starfire froze, leaving the next step completely up to him. But when he brought his face closer to hers, until there was less than an inch between them, she tilted her head obligingly. He captured her lips in a soft, but passionate kiss, and she did her best to mirror him. He took this as encouragement and his free hand went to the back of her neck, holding her while he deepened the kiss.

_Wow,_ thought Starfire, _I can see why they enjoy this so much_. Robin's thoughts were somewhat less coherent.

Eventually, they broke apart and stared into each others eyes for a moment.

"I missed you, Starfire"

"I missed you too, Robin"


End file.
